This Week In Collaboration

Welcome to our bi-weekly recap of the week’s best articles surrounding collaboration.

What’s Standards-Based Video Conferencing Anyway?“Are you currently set up with some sort of standards-based system for video conferencing?” The question itself exemplifies the inability of current players to understand the shift that WebRTC is bringing with it–and here, WebRTC is just a catalyst for a larger industry trend in communications. I have WebRTC on my browser. I’ve got Skype installed and Hangouts as well. Between these three services, do I need any “standards-based system for video conferencing” to talk to anyone?

A UC in the Cloud UpdateAdoption of cloud-based UC applications isn’t exactly new. In fact, one could argue that the two most widely used collaboration applications have always been cloud-based; WebEx and Skype. But for those using enterprise platforms for voice, video conferencing, messaging, and document sharing, it’s only more recently that cloud-based alternatives have become a viable alternative to on-premises systems. So is it time for companies of any and all sizes to toss out their on-premises platforms and move to the cloud? The answer, as any good consultant will tell you, is “it depends.”

Federation of State Medical Boards requires video consultsThis past weekend, the State Medical Boards’ Appropriate Regulation of Telemedicine (SMART) Workgroup of the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) issued a new guidance document designed to help individual state medical boards establish more cohesive and uniform policies for the administration and regulation of telemedicine. According to the document issued by the SMART Workgroup, these model guidelines provide a basis for state medical boards to evaluate, “the appropriateness of care as related to the use of telemedicine, or the practice of medicine using electronic communication, information technology or other means, between a physician in one location and a patient in another location with or without an intervening health care provider.”

Collaboration Technology and the Future WorkplaceThere’s no doubt that the physical environment in which we work is important. Spaces that are clean, well-lit, and attractive can go a long way towards fostering productivity, positive attitudes, and teamwork. But configuring your physical space is just one part of the overall solution. Embedding collaboration technology into your space design is critical to the success of any workplace transformation effort. Employees need seamless, uninterrupted access to the information they need to get their jobs done. And the tools they use must be as intuitive as their own personal devices.

Telecommuting Tales from a First-Time MomWorking in an environment that champions video, I’ve always had the flexibility to telecommute. But never have I appreciated it more than these past eight months. Here are a few reasons why; It’s a time saver. Every moment is precious and sometimes moms wish there were 28 hours in a day so they could get everything done. By using videoconferencing, there’s no commute, which means saving a lot of time. Some positions require a bit of travel and thanks to video there are ways for mothers to stay connected while away. Lastly, by using video to connect with coworkers, it gives mothers the ability to east in and out of maternity leave seamlessly by always staying connected face to face.